Live Labs 2

ADEPT Live Labs 2: Decarbonising Local Roads in the UK 

Live Labs 2 is a three-year, £30 million, UK-wide programme funded by the Department for Transport that will run until March 2026, with a five-year subsequent, extended monitoring and evaluation period. Seven projects, grouped by four interconnected themes, are being led by local authorities working alongside commercial and academic partners.

Following the success of the ADEPT SMART Places Live Labs programme (Live Labs 1) and its focus on innovation across local roads, Live Labs 2 concentrates on how to decarbonise local highways infrastructure and assets.

Live Labs 2 Project Innovations

Ten strategic innovations or outputs have been achieved from across the seven Live Labs 2 projects as well as a portfolio of tactical innovations. They cover the full lifecycle from planning and procurement through to maintenance and operation, providing local highway authorities with ideas to reduce carbon, save money, and improve how roads are planned, built and maintained.  

Together, these outputs show how local authorities can: 

• Save money and time
• Improve safety and environmental outcomes
• Make better, evidence-based decisions
• Cut carbon emissions significantly 

The ambition is to embed low-carbon thinking into everyday highway service processes across the whole local authority highways life-cycle, rather than treating it as an optional add-on.  

About Live Labs 2 Year 4 2026/27

A further £300,000 from DfT for Year 4 will get these innovations and associated thinking out across the highways sector so they are scaled and become normal for UK roads. This will involve collaboration with industry to get the right approaches in the right places.

The programme will monitor their uptake over the next five years to see if the innovations remain effective. The new approaches have been tested on local roads. The programme’s work is monitored; learning is shared and communicated to make sure the results are credible and can be used across the sector. Seven projects, four interconnected themes

Live Labs 2 includes seven projects, grouped by four interconnected themes, led by local authorities working alongside academic partners. You can find out more about each project on the themes and projects page and watch the introductory video.

Commissioning Board

Live Labs 2 is overseen by an independent Commissioning Board: ADEPT (chair), AtkinsRealis, Construction LCA, Core Highways, County Surveyors’ Society (CSS) Wales, Department for Infrastructure Northern Ireland, DfT Roads, DfT SciTech, Kent County Council, Kier Highways, National Highways, Open Data Institute, Ringway, Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland (SCOTS), Transport for London, CIHT, LGTAG, LCRIG and WSP.

Latest news

• Sign the pledge! Live Labs 2 launched an industry decarbonisation pledge in April 2025 - find out more
• Want to know who won the Dragons' Den at the recent Expo - find out here
• BIT report: read our groundbreaking report that reveals how behavioural change can significantly accelerate decarbonisation across the UK’s local roads - find out more
• Live Labs 2 Expo 2025 - materials and resources now available here
• The latest blog can be found under Live Labs 2 blogs

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